Tuesday, May 28, 2013

Israel is the only country in the world where Arabs are free and at home. Everywhere else, Arab people have to choose: home and tyranny or exile and freedom. Not in Israel. Here, they get both. Here, they can be themselves with pride. That is Zionism. And that is something to celebrate.

Israel is the ONLY country in the Middle East that treats Arabs with dignity, fairness and equality. The only... one that grants them their basic, democratic rights. The Arab Spring has still not changed that reality.

Israel is the only country in the Middle East where Palestinian Arabs were made full citizens -- and have risen to become ministers in government, ambassadors, justices of the supreme court, leading scientists, businessmen, members of parliament, celebrities and military officers.

Surrounded by an ocean of Arab states, Israel is nonetheless the only country in the Middle East where Arab people are allowed to freely speak their mind and conscience. We didn't need an Arab Spring in Israel... Freedom of expression, religion, commerce, conscience... these are a given in Israel. That is why it thrives.

Israel is also the only country in the Middle East where minorities are protected -- both by law and the general attitude. It is the only place where it is OK to be different. And that is something for ALL Israelis -- Jews, Arabs, Christians, Druze, Bahais, Vietnamese, Circassians, everyone who together built the country up from nothing in 65 years -- to be very, very proud of.

You don't need perfection to be proud of something good. You don't need perfection to defend what is just and right.

It is no surprise that the haters of Israel accuse us of the crimes that THEY commit. It is no surprise that they choose their libels to obscur the real values of Israel: freedom, tolerance, equality, diversity. They think that by accusing Israel of Apartheid they can hide Israel's democracy and their own Apartheid. They think that by accusing us of racism they can hide Israel's immense diversity (by choice) and their own prejudices.

Well, they can't. Major Ala Wahib is just one proud reason why.

In the words of the prophet:

"You can fool some people sometime, but you can't fool all the people all of the time... and now you see the light, we're gonna stand up for our rights" -- Bob Marley, citing King Solomon.

Sunday, May 26, 2013

Jordanian visitors tell Orthodox clinic brass that they are planning to open a similar clinic for women in the Hashemite kingdom soon.

A delegation from the Jordanian Red Cross came to Jerusalem on Wednesday to tour Bishvilaych, a nonprofit medical clinic for haredi and Modern Orthodox Jewish women in the capital’s Givat Shaul neighborhood.

Many traditionally religious women feel uncomfortable about being examined by male doctors and discussing intimate matters with them – and according to the heads of the clinic, haredi and Israeli Arab women are known to have relatively high mortality rates of breast cancer because they are hesitant to go for a mammography. Bishvilaych sees Muslim women as well as observant Jewish women.

The Jordanian visitors told Bishvilaych founder and CEO Sara Siemiatycki and medical director Dr. Diana Flescher that they were planning to open a similar clinic for women in the Hashemite kingdom soon.

At the facility – which moved some time ago from the capital’s Geula neighborhood – the head of the Jordanian team, Leila Toucan Abu al- Ouda learned how the women medical staffers daily diagnose and treat observant patients of all faiths.

The Bishvilaych heads said that one of their challenges was increasing awareness of breast cancer and other diseases among religious women, and of the need for early detection.

Siemiatycki told her guests that she was glad to be hosting them, as they and her clinic shared the problems of dealing with modesty and medical care for observant women.

“We will be happy to help you during the establishment of your center to advance the field of women’s health in the whole world,” she said.

Bishvilaych, which translates to the feminine form of “For You,” claims to be the only holistic wellness facility for religious women in Israel.

In 2008, Flescher told The Jerusalem Post that the model of the Jerusalem center “could easily serve other populations such as Arab Israeli women who have large families, tend to give their own health low priority and – for reasons of modesty – prefer women doctors to examine them and discuss intimate matters.”

She stressed then that Bishvilaych was not a replacement for the public health fund services to which every Israeli is entitled.

“We are not affiliated [with] any health fund, but our female physicians refer patients for tests and visits to specialists,” she said. The clinic offers personal attention, a holistic view of the patient and a focus on health education and disease prevention.

Siemiatycki noted in that same interview that “haredi women generally give higher priority to the needs of their husbands and many children, and put themselves at the bottom of the totem pole. As a result, breast cancer, for example, is diagnosed much later in haredi women than in their secular counterparts.”

While usage of the social network is on the decline in the United States, Israelis won’t be defriending it anytime soon.

Check your news feed: Facebook is getting significantly fewer likes these days – but not in Israel.

If you have a second window open in your Web browser while reading this story, chances are, it’s open to Facebook. But while the world’s most famous social network is undoubtedly popular, a recent survey by the Pew Research Center proves that more and more Americans are saying that their relationship with Mark Zuckerberg’s brainchild is complicated.

According to the survey, which was published in February, 62% of American users have taken a “break” from Facebook for at least a few weeks. And according to an article from Reuters last month, investors in the cutting-edge tech hub of Silicon Valley have been flocking to a handful of newer, fresher social networks preferred by young people.

Israelis, however, are in a happy and committed relationship with the network, according the recent comScore survey, which shows them spending more time per month on the site than users from any other nation.

Elad Brindt Shavit, Facebook account manager for the Israeli market, says that on average, Israelis spend 11 hours a month a Facebook, a figure that has held steady for the past two years.

Brindt Shavit says that Israel has 4 million Facebook users, and they log on several times a month. The number of “likes” handed out by Israelis has more than doubled in the past year, climbing from 300 million in 2012 to 764 million in 2013 to date.

And of course, let’s not forget the young couple from Tel Aviv who named their baby “Like” in 2011, in perhaps the greatest act of solidarity with the network to date.

There has also been growth in the number of replies to posts, which now stands at 120 million per month. Israelis update their statuses 13 million times a month.Sixty percent of Israeli Facebook members log onto the social network on a daily basis. Male users edge out female users 52% to 48%.

According to Brindt Shavit, older Israelis are also using the network more. Currently, 9 percent of Israeli Facebook users are 55 or older and 8 percent are between 45 and 55.

But most Israeli Facebookers are young. 13 percent of them are between 13 and 17 years old; 28 percent are between 18 and 24; 27 percent are between 25 and 34; and 15 percent are ages 35 to 44.

An aging population, deep pockets of poverty, environmental hazards – some of Asia’s most pressing worries – present a wealth of business opportunities for innovative Israeli companies.

An aging population, deep pockets of poverty, environmental hazards – some of Asia’s most pressing worries – present a wealth of business opportunities for innovative Israeli companies. That, at least, was the message from the first annual Israel-Asia Summit in Tel Aviv on Wednesday.

“Asia is rarely discussed at the major conferences in Israel” said Rebecca Zeffert, the founder and executive director of the Israel-Asia Center, which sponsored the conference.

“If they do, they ask, ‘Why Asia?’ But it doesn’t reflect the issues that are being discussed in Asia. I wanted to discuss major trends in Asia that nobody is talking about in Israel.”

Foremost among those trends are the demographic changes occurring in many of Asia’s most important economies.

A “silver tsunami” in Korea, the fastest-aging population in the world, means that more than 20 percent of its population will be elderly by 2026, according to Korea Economic Research Institute president Choi Byung-il. In China, the proportion of elderly is set to triple by 2050. Japan’s graying population, said TMT Strategic Advising partner Levi Shapiro, “is a great opportunity for investment.”

With a lower proportion of young people to care for the increasingly old population, technology can play an important part in not only care, but recreation as well.

“Is anyone thinking about the over-60 market for iPhone apps?” Zeffert asked. Whether building technological toys for the elderly, robotic dogs or age-friendly cars, she said, Israeli technology could fill a major gap. “We have the technology, we just don’t fully understand the market,” she said.

Israel’s clean technology also gives it an edge when it comes to the immense environmental challenges facing fast developing Asian countries.

The lack of energy alternatives contributes to overwhelming air pollution, both an environmental hazard and a health one, as a result of smoke inhalation, said Janet Pau of the Asia Business Council.

“Green innovation is a constant problem,” she said. “Israel has lots to offer on that front.”

In India, there are two distinct markets for Israeli business, said Arvind Gupta, an adviser on business and technology to India’s opposition Bharatiya Janata Party.

While on the one hand, there is a Western-style quality-of-life market in search of ways to make the good life even better, “there is also a world that is bottom of the pyramid, that live on less than $2 a day,” he said. “How can we change their lives? Do we have innovations, and what kind of platforms can we build?” Health, energy and education are the most important fields for that market, he said. For example, an iPhone or tablet in a semirural area offers relatively staggering computing power and could be used as a microbank or a diagnostic device.

“It’s two different markets, but it’s not a matter of choosing between them,” Gupta said.

A similar dynamic exists in China, said Ron Waldman, a partner at the Asia Business Gateway. “The nicest mall will be right next to a slum where people are living on $2 a day,” he said. While the slum residents don’t have much consumer power, their local government has access to capital and is hungry for technological ways to solve their problems, he said.

Why would Israel, of all places, hold possible solutions to this sea of problems? The recurring conclusion at the summit was that Israel has a comparative advantage in its culture of innovation.

In many Asian education systems “the common theme that comes across is that there’s a culture of performance and conformity,” Pau said.

A student from Singapore on a fellowship in Israel said in his home country, known for its world-class education in math and sciences, the focus on rote learning stymies innovative thinking.

“The education system we are moving toward is conformity and standardization,” he said.

Hundreds of thousands of tourists expected to view spectacular Lod mosaic at world’s most visited museum this summer

History is being made at the Louvre Museum in Paris: For the first time an official Israeli exhibition will be displayed in the world’s most visited museum.

The spectacular Lod mosaic that was uncovered in an archaeological excavation by the Israel Antiquities Authority will be on display in the Cour du Sphinx (Sphinx Courtyard) in the Roman wing of the museum between May 23 and August 19.

So far, the mosaic has been shown at five museums in the United States, first and foremost among them a successful presentation held at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, and a total of some 700,000 visitors have attended the exhibitions in America.

Until today, only a number of private Israeli artists have been exhibited in the Louvre, and now, for the very first time, an official Israeli exhibition will be displayed in the French museum.

According to the director of the Israel Antiquities Authority, Shuka Dorfman, “This is a great honor and achievement for the Israel Antiquities Authority and a wonderful opportunity for the millions of visitors to the museum to see the masterpiece from Lod and learn about the archaeology and history of the Land of Israel.”

The 1,700-year-old mosaic, one of the most magnificent and largest ever revealed in Israel, was uncovered in the city of Lod in 1996 and covered over again in order to protect it.

In 2009, after obtaining the necessary funding to expose it, the Israel Antiquities Authority renewed the archaeological excavation there and removed the mosaic from the site in order to conserve it.

The mosaic constitutes a rare archaeological gem that is extraordinarily well-preserved. It measures approximately 180 square meters and is composed of colorful carpets that depict in detail mammals, birds, fish, flora and the sailing and merchant vessels that were used at that time. It is thought the mosaic floor was part of a villa that belonged to a wealthy person in the Roman period.

The Shelby White and Leon Levy Lod Mosaic Archaeological Center, which will be constructed in the city of Lod where the mosaic was discovered, is presently in the advance stages of planning. The center is scheduled to be opened in the autumn of 2014.

Click here for the Lod mosaic exhibition announcement on the Louvre Museum website

This four-minute video produced by the Metropolitan Museum from footage provided by the Israel Antiquities Authority documents the initial discovery of the Lod mosaic in 1996 and its lifting and conservation in 2009. The work in 2009 produced some dramatic results that shed light on the way the mosaic was laid some seventeen hundred years ago.

Google and other companies approached Waze after its talks with Facebook became public, Bloomberg news reported.

Google is considering buying Israeli mobile satellite navigation startup Waze, which may lead to a bidding war with Facebook, Bloomberg news reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

Waze is seeking more than $1 billion and is fielding expressions of interest from multiple parties, said Bloomberg, citing a source.

Other media have reported that Facebook has held talks to buy Waze for as much as $1 billion.

Google and other parties approached Waze after the Facebook talks became public but none of the bidders are close to clinching a deal, Bloomberg said, adding that the startup might decide to remain independent.

Waze could not immediately be reached for comment. Google did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Waze uses satellite signals from members’ smartphones to generate maps and traffic data, which it then shares with other users, offering real-time traffic info.

Israel is in the forefront of global aerospace innovations, technologies and research: building and launching satellites, developing electro-optical systems and monitoring the environment from space. The Israeli aerospace industry, now a major player in outer space, has also been working on space projects with other countries - such as the United States, France, Italy and others.

Academy Award-winner Morgan Freeman was honored this month with the Jake Eberts Key of Knowledge Award at a gala reception hosted by Canadian Friends of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem (CFHU).

The award celebrates Freeman’s dedication to combating racism and promoting knowledge and education worldwide. The gala was held at the Toronto Center for the Arts and was attended by more than 700 guests.

The event raised $2 million for the Institute for Medical Research Israel-Canada (IMRIC), Canada’s premier institute in Israel and a symbol of the scientific cooperation and friendship between both countries.

Through IMRIC, Israeli and Canadian scientists are working together to find solutions and better treatments for diseases such as cancer, diabetes, Alzheimer’s, and heart- and brain-related disorders.

Funds raised will also establish a scholarship fund for international students participating in the Public Health and Community Medicine Program at the Hebrew University.

Hebrew University President Prof. Menahem Ben-Sasson presented the award to Morgan Freeman.

“In presenting this Award, the Hebrew University and its Canadian Friends association pay tribute to your long-standing commitment to humanitarian relief the world over, your affirmation of the dignity and autonomy of every human being, and your commitment to advancing education — values that we share in common,” Prof. Ben-Sasson said.

“The Hebrew University, Israel’s first and leading institution of higher education, is a meeting place for peoples of all beliefs and backgrounds, and an institution whose goals to seek truth and serve humanity are pursued in a spirit of openness, pluralism and tolerance.

“In the words of Albert Einstein, one of the Hebrew University’s visionary founders: ‘A university is a place where the universality of the human spirit manifests itself.’”

Universality of education

Among the guest present at the event were Dr. Amir Amedi, renowned IMRIC brain scientist, and Dr. Josephine Ojiambo, Kenya’s ambassador to the United Nations and Hebrew University alumna.

Elan Divon, executive director of CFHU Toronto, said following the event: “Last night was a tribute to an extraordinary actor and humanitarian, Morgan Freeman. But it was also a tribute to all the educators, teachers, and change makers of this world; people who get up every morning and believe they can make a difference.

“Yes we raised a significant amount of money towards scientific and medical research at the Hebrew University, but our impact goes well beyond that. By bringing together a Hollywood icon, a Kenyan ambassador, and an Israeli scientist, we were able to demonstrate the universality of education, and what we can achieve when we invest in human capital and young minds.”

A special question-and-answer session with Morgan Freeman was moderated by two-time Emmy Award-winning filmmaker, Paul Saltzman and hosted by Jian Ghomeshi. Guests also enjoyed a tribute video featuring Shirley Douglas, actress and political activist; Marc and Craig Kielburger, co-founders of Free the Children; Piers Handling, director and CEO of TIFF; and Robert Lantos, founder of Serendipity Point Films.

The Jake Eberts Key of Knowledge Award is named in honor of the late film producer Jake Eberts, who in 2011 received the first-ever Key of Knowledge Award in recognition of his dissemination of knowledge through film and his significant philanthropic contributions.

Throughout his 35-year film career, Eberts helped create many Academy Award-winning films, including Chariots of Fire, Gandhi, Driving Miss Daisy and Dances with Wolves, and such notable documentaries as Prisoner of Paradise, Journey to Mecca and Oceans. His final project, “Jerusalem,” is an Imax 3D production due for worldwide release later this year.

Selection of first Ethiopian-born Miss Israel reflects growing trend, as more and more opportunities become available for local Ethiopian beauty to be exposed, promoted

In February this year an Ethiopian Israeli beauty queen won the Miss Israel contest for the very first time in Israeli history. This reflects a growing trend in Israel as more and more opportunities become available for local Ethiopian Israeli beauties.

Israeli actress Odeya Rush may be just 15 years old, but she can already mark a major achievement in her career.

Rush, who has been dividing her life between New York and Los Angeles in recent years, has earned a Young Artist Award nomination as Best Supporting Actress for her role in the 2012 feature film “The Odd Life of Timothy Green,” directed by Peter Hedges.

The Annual Young Artist Awards ceremony, which will be held in Los Angeles on Sunday, is considered a great starting point for youth performers in Hollywood. Past winners include actresses Winona Ryder and Drew Barrymore.

Rush, who is represented by the ADD agency, has made guest star appearances in television series “Curb Your Enthusiasm” and “Law and Order: SVU.” In 2012 she was cast as young Mary in “Mary, Mother of the Christ.”

He noted that TAU invests $150 million a year in R&D. Among Ramot’s big successes is flash memory, which was licensed by an Israeli company before it was sold to Sandisk, which still pays millions of dollars of royalties to the university.

Nimrodi said the new fund will invest in healthcare, pharmaceuticals, cleantech, food security, the environment, engineering and software.

He noted that in some cases, Tata will get the right of first opportunity in a particular research project.

Many large global companies have R&D facilities in Israel, including Intel, Microsoft, IBM, Google, HP and Yahoo.

ACT NOW for ISRAEL: Flush ‘LUSH’ Cosmetics!

LUSH Cosmetics has quietly closed its Beverly Hills, California location several months after a group known as “Join the Boycott LA” (www.JTBLA.com) organized a protest outside the store to expose the company’s support of PLO extremism. LUSH, with headquarters in the UK and stores in over 40 countries around the world, is using its customers’ money to support the PLO’s extremist “One World Campaign”. This virulently anti-Israel organization portrays Israel as an “illegal” occupier committing crimes against “Palestine” and grossly exaggerates the suffering in Gaza, placing responsibility solely on the Israelis.

There is much more work to be done. We urge you to ACT NOW FOR ISRAEL by sending an email to customercare@lush.co.uk to protest their anti-Israel extremism.

It has come to our attention that LUSH, a leading luxury handmade cosmetics company, gives a percentage of its profits to an anti-Israel organization called “OneWorld”. Upon visiting the OneWorld website (http://freedomoneworld.org/), it is very clear that they are supported by extreme anti-Israel groups that are sympathetic to terrorist activity against the State of Israel. For example, one of the supporting groups is called “Friends of al-Aqsa”. Visiting their website speaks for itself: http://www.foa.org.uk/.

Did You Know?

Israeli scientists developed the first fully computerized, no-radiation, diagnostic instrumentation for breast cancer.

Did You Know?

An Israeli-initiated project is drastically lowering the mortality rate of Ethiopian children infected with the AIDS/HIV virus.

LIVE Talk Radio from Israel – Tuesday Nights!

LIVE FROM ISRAEL! TUESDAY NIGHTS 5:00PM – 7:00PM (EST)

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Yishai and Malkah Fleisher, two well-known internet radio personalities, made the leap to broadcast radio on the new Galey Yisrael station in Israel, blazing a trail to create content for the growing segment of the Israeli public that speaks English. You won’t want to miss it!

We will be broadcast LIVE FROM ISRAEL every Tuesday Night from 5:00pm – 7:00pm (EST)

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I never did anything alone. Whatever was accomplished in this country was accomplished collectively.- Golda Meir